Round Two
by Helst
Summary: The start of a new year, and the start of a new community. Led by text messages from your relative, you find yourself entering the Iwatodai dorm. But little did you know this friendly dorm holds a dark past. Tracing your relative's steps you search for the reason he is now gone and the world he died saving may not yet be completely saved. Rated T for swearing.
1. Round Two: Take One

**12/31 late at night**

It's the last day of the year. You lie in your bland bed, watching from the comfort of your granny flat how the world decides to celebrate the end of yet another December. You see fireworks and people dancing and drinking, cheesing and making funny faces at the camera and suppress a chuckle threatening to erupt. You couldn't dare laugh at a time like this. Not when it's only been a few days since the freshly upturned mound of earth became your grandmother's final resting place.

'Just a few more days and she could have seen the year grow out…'

A lump grows in your throat but you don't let it grow. You would have to be strong now. Tears are for the weak. So instead you wisely choose to turn down the TV volume and snuggle a little deeper into your bed. Rolling over to your side, you watch the walls glow green to blue to black to yellow, a mirror of the TV screen you turned away from.

BEEP!

Suddenly your phone cries a single tune and lights up. From the single note you can tell you've gotten a text message and decide not to read it. Perhaps it's an early happy new year message from a drunk friend. You were bound to get plenty of those tonight.

BEEP!

Your phone cries again. You curiously roll over to face the tea table where your phone charges every night and wonder how drunk your friend must be to have sent two messages in such quick succession.

BEEP!

Your phone cries once more and you grunt a little before heaving your lazy body up. You reach for the phone and flip it open. As you predicted, you got three messages, two from a friend whose text couldn't possibly be deciphered. A jumble of incoherent words misspelt and disturbingly lovey; undeniable proof that too much alcohol had been consumed tonight.

'Definitely drunk' you think and delete the messages instantly.

Then you scroll down the inbox till you find the only unread message left; one from a number you don't instantly recognise. You tilt your head in confusion but the number doesn't appear anymore recognisable than it did. Slumping back into the warmth of your blankets taking the phone down with you, you read the numbers on the screen carefully before choosing to open the title-less text message.

_Happy new year. Sorry to hear about Grandma._

Two short sentences. You feel surprised and somewhat intrigued, that just from a two line message, a bolt of lightning strikes and you know who it's from. In your defence, no other relative you know could string two decent sentences together at a time like this. If you knew any better, your other relatives would probably be drunk and taken away by the police by now.

You ponder how the sender knew about grandma. You decidedly kept it from everyone until the very last minute. The sender, a far relative you've only heard about from cousins of cousins, wasn't even considered when you chose to let your grandma's passing be known.

But still, he knew and you wondered if you should reply.

'I should,' you think to yourself but find yourself hesitating. The sender was a mysterious person you wouldn't even know was your relative save for the sloppy secret keeping cousins you had. All you knew was his name, and that his parents died 10 years ago. Everything else remained as a mystery.

Then you think again and a small flame of empathy echoes from within. He was a lonely person. He lost his parents from a young age, just like you. Even now, he was alone, just like you are now.

You slip further into your bed, lying on your side and pulling your knees to your chin. The bed covers now cover your entirely so within the small cave of blankets you slowly type out a reply.

_You too. Thanks._

Then you stop, think and with a quick movement hit send and squeeze your eyes shut. The damage is done and now you are talking to your ghost of a relative. You can only hope he isn't some creepy guy trying to check if you now lived alone for malicious intentions.

"God…" you whisper and kick your phone out of the bed out of self-inflicted frustration.

It drops to the floor with a small crash but you know it isn't broken. That brick will never die.

Out of the shock from falling, the screen on the front blinks the time at you and you peer at it.

11:59.

You hold your breath for the final minute of this year.

Then as the wall highlighted furiously by the fire-works riddled screen tumbles a rainbow of colours you murmur to yourself.

"Happy new year."

00:00.

* * *

**1/8 Midday**

You're back at school today and the world seems to have finally settled down from the initial euphoria of beginning a new year. The new year party suits and dresses were gone and the usual routine began again and you think how boring it is.

"You're not sleeping in my class, are you?" a strict voice jolts me upright like a whip ripping through the still classroom air. You shuffle uncomfortably in your seat while your classmates giggle at your embarrassment and you frown a little but don't make it show. Instead you mumble an apology and lower your eyes, hoping the apology was enough to satisfy your teacher.

Luckily, he is and you slump back down into your previous position, now slightly more aware of your surroundings and pick up your pen again. But what you fail to notice was that a message had arrived at your phone. It vibrates violently in your bag but you don't feel it. It wasn't until you got home after school that you see it and quickly flip the phone open.

It was the same number as new years eve and your eyes open wider in surprise. You didn't get a reply after your rather choppy message was sent and you didn't expect to hear from him again until the day you died.

You hastily open the message and scan the contents.

_School is back. Uniform feels a little tight._

Again, all you have is two sentences. But you can see deeper into the situation surrounding your mysterious cousin.

School has started for him as well. He must be a student still. Assuming that he means school has only just recently started again, you throw a guess he's a high school student like yourself. The word uniform also implies this. You unconsciously drop your eyes to your own uniform and crease a little smile. Then he says the uniform feels a little tight. Maybe he's gained a bit of weight from the new years party? So he wasn't so lonely.

You flip the phone shut and imagine, a young parent-less lonely high school student who, somewhere up in the family tree, was your family, now having a fun life surrounded by others and eating good food. He complains a little about his weight, so he was health conscious or style conscious, you can't decide but you do know he is self- aware.

He bothered to message her, the other lonely child of the family, on new years eve and again maintaining that small chain of connection by sending her yet another message about a small event in his own life. You contemplate on the possibility that maybe he was a nice guy. Judging by how you look, he may not look terribly bad as well. Maybe he likes to listen to music as much as you do? Looking a little broody or dorky, depending on which way others want to see it, trapped between the notes exploding from the head phones?

Your imagination grows and grows until you find yourself smiling a stifled grin. You know it makes you look stupid but you can't help it. You cling to your phone and just sit on the bed wondering and wondering.

* * *

**1/15 Night**

BEEP!

_A bus drove by spraying water all over me. I felt sick and drank a vial of God knows what and now I feel worse. Walking home I stepped in a puddle of… . So I went to the game arcade today to test my luck. Turns out I had to watch out for water today._

You giggle, reading over his text again. It was significantly long, or appeared so on your tiny phone screen but you don't mind. His texts grew in length with each message, a sign of growing confidence in his confidant with you and noticing this you feel somewhat pleased with the faith. You crinkle your eyes and make a delicate smile before rapidly typing back a reply.

_Just your luck. I hope you get well soon. Did your friend end up making delicious rice-balls? Send me a photo of the dog you're raising at the dorm again, I think he's adorable._

Send.

You wait, sitting idly on your sofa, knowing that within a matter of minutes, the requested photo will be taken, and a reply to each part of your message will arrive.

You scroll back to your phone log and see messages sent and received are all between you and him. He seemed to know exactly how to respond to any topic you chose to start off with. No wonder he had so many friends in his dorm. She knew them all now too, not by their names but as he would introduce in his messages to her; cooking friend, high-class friend, athletic friend, cute friend, best friend.

BEEP! The phone rings again and you see an attached image of the dog you've come to love through still images. He was wearing wings today and looking straight into the camera with his pair of beady red eyes, as if he could see beyond the camera and right at you. In the background you see a row of sofa and pairs of legs resting comfortably on it and imagine it to be the friends of your relative.

A few seconds later following the image, a small text arrives.

_I told him it's a photo for my relative. Apparently he says hi._

You giggle at the amused tone of his text, and indulge yourself in his words. Apprently? So he knows what the dog is saying? Or can the dog speak?

Your mouth is looped into a goofy smile and your fingers are already flying across the key pad typing letter by letter your words.

_Tell him I say hi back._

* * *

**1/30 late at night**

Tonight, you find yourself caught in a little dilemma. For some reason tonight your usually short sentenced relative is sending lengthy sentences of text which seem to be about the topic of the newly spreading popular cult culture.

The way he writes sounds a little frustrated but mostly tired; tired of hearing people pray for the end of the world. A little angry at the world, but mostly a little tense, his words are rougher than usual. So you reply soft encouragements and practically just read his message after message, letting him vent through the phone. He'd been fine until just yesterday and you wonder what it could be all about. But you don't dare interrupt his rant and choose to lay low, until he blows some steam.

* * *

**1/31 Early morning**

Waking up dazed and confused, you quickly realise you fell asleep while reading your relative's latest rant and quickly check your phone. He had sent a few more after you dozed off but not getting any replies back, he seemed to have stopped sending messages. Wiping the hair out of your eyes, you readjust your body so the sunlight doesn't reflect off the screen you're trying to read and carefully structure out an apology and a fresh encouragement.

_Sorry for the delay, I must've dozed off at some point. Are you feeling better today? It's a fresh morning, and probably a fresh start for you too. Try not to get too upset over the crazy things people do, but if you ever need to rant, I'm here for you._

Send.

* * *

**2/28 Midday**

You check your phone again, sneaking a peek from under the desk. Hoping that last vibration was from your relative, you steal a glance and sigh.

Again, it was a prank message from your friend, conscious of the fact that you haven't let go of your phone once since the beginning of the year. You throw the guilty friend a dirty look and get a good view of her poking tongue in response.

It had been over a month since you slipped up and slept through your relative's messages. You had sent him over a dozen messages between then and now, some apologising, some attempting mend the fence with a new topic of his interest. But he never replied. You couldn't tell if he was doing this purposely out of spite or if something had happened to him but it hurt all the same. But you decide to give him space and now you're playing the waiting game.

* * *

**3/3 Midday**

BEEP!

You tremble at the sound. Not only has your phone gone off in class and made the teacher spin around in angry astonishment, but you instantly had a feeling. A nostalgic feeling you knew who caused the phone to sing.

"Bring that phone here, now!" Your teacher yells and you pull back in your seat. Dodging curious glances from your watching friends, you pull out the offensive phone and quickly scroll through to the messages.

Your heart stops a beat.

You know that number.

It was your relative.

Out of the corner of your eye you can see the teacher stomping towards you to confiscate your phone but you can't let him take it now. You had to read your relatives message. Something inside you tells you it's important and keeps stinging at your heart.

You press open and the message loads. You hungrily read through his message.

_Meet me. Iwatodai dorm 2__nd__ floor, last room on the right. Bring your belongings._

"You dare bring your phone to school, missy?" Your teacher asks annoyed at you, creasing his eyebrows into a deep frown and you look back at him. He throws out his hand at you to flicks it a few times, wanting to take your phone from you. But you hesitate.

Your relative wanted to meet you. After over 2 months of silence, your relative invited you to meet him. You were not about to let your teacher stand in the way.

So defiantly you rise from your seat. Your fellow classmates and teacher look taken aback at your actions but cannot speak. It was your teacher who recovered first, his face firing up red dangerously as he yells impatiently. But you don't bother to listen. The consequences can come later.

You pick up your bag and shove your school belongings in them. You plan in your head as this happens:

first you'll go home and take a few clothes, then take the train to this Iwatodai, and ask around for the dorm. You'll finally get to see your relative and know he does genuinely exist in real life.

"I'm leaving." You announce to your teacher mid-way through his yells. He stops dead when you cut his words and appears at a loss. You couldn't care less. Right now, Iwatodai is the place for you to be, you think.

Moving before your thoughts had caught up with your body, you circle around the teacher now appearing gobsmacked as if you'd just punched him in the gut. Then with a brisk pace, you walk to the classroom door, slide it wide open then step outside. A cheer erupts from your classroom and you smile smugly while imagining your relative.

'I'm coming for you.'

* * *

First ever persona fic, written while watching the sunrise.

Hope you enjoy,

Helst.


	2. Round Two: Take Two

**3/3 Night**

Your train grinds to a stop at Iwatodai station with only a few passengers left boarding. You pick up your belongings, just a few bits of clothing and what you took to school today, and bounce off the carriage. It looks different to your usual station, there were shops and restaurant lining the roadside with a flashy mascot out the front of a glass shop front letting you see the patrons already enjoying the restaurant.

It lightens your mood, by just a little bit and the curious part of you wants to stay and check everything out but your mind knows better. You have priorities, and the first on the list right now was to find your relative.

You pull out your phone and read his last message again, and remind yourself where you have to go.

Iwatodai dorm.

You pull over a few passer bys to ask them of this dorm but get brushed off (probably because you're still in your uniform and look like a runaway kid). Some haven't even heard of the place anyway. You've been asking around a lot of people at this point and you start to grow restless. You want to get there quickly but while everyone seems happy to chat about their own lives once you crack a conversation with them, they don't really respond to your question very well.

But just as you were reaching your patience limit, and you feel like you've made your pitch against everyone in the station, a silver haired boy appears in your view. He stops dead centre of the road and scans his surroundings. When his face turns to your direction, you glance back at him, half hopeful he was looking for someone, looking for you. So it astonishes you delightfully when you see his grey eyes brighten a tone and soften around the hard edges when he catches you looking. It frightfully surprises you when that boy starts to make unhesitant strong steps towards you.

'It can't be...' you think to yourself as the boy makes his walk. He's getting closer and closer and your eyes are open as wide as they could.

He reaches you in a matter of a few swift steps and unlike his steps, with a little uncertainty, he opens his mouth to speak.

"Excuse me, are you..?" he looks at you hopefully and even without him completing his sentence, you know who he needs. You smile at him.

"Are you my relative?" you ask back and while he seems amused at your title for him, makes a quick smile back and nods his head. But what he says is contradictory.

"I'm not your relative..." he begins and falters to see your previous smile slide straight off your face.

"I'm living in the dorm with him though." he hastily adds on and looks relieved to see the frown turn around again.

You simply look at him, slightly dazzled at how your relative has thoughtfully sent someone out to get you. Just like his old messages, you can just feel his thoughts for you. Your anticipation to meet your relative simply grows and your heart warms despite the yet chilly night air. You titter about on your foot a bit and ask.

"Has he sent you to get me?"

"Um…" The boy stops and has a lowered look about him. Something strange seems to be on his mind and you can hear his mind whirring to come up with an adequate answer.

When the boy fails to answer you, may it be a few seconds, your patience is thin tonight and you press on.

"How come he hasn't come to get me instead?"

"Um…" The boy errs on his own words again, distrustful of his own mouth and decides to leave the question hanging again. This time, your sixth sense catches on and you know something is definitely up. Why send a complete stranger to pick up your only family?

Also, why send short message asking you to meet him so suddenly after months of silence?

And finally, how and why has he texted his way into your life? You, a distant relative you wouldn't have even known to have existed?

The questions pile up and parallel to the deepening crease between your brows, the silver-haired boys' frown worsens too. He's yet to conjure up an answer but his mind manages to hold off the moment by redirecting your questions.

"Let's get you to the dorm first. I'll explain everything there."

* * *

"I'm Akihiko Sanada. I've been living in the Iwatodai dorm for a few years now and I got to know your relative there."

The silver-haired boy, Sanada, begins as he heaves your bag over his own shoulder; a desperate attempt to distract you from your thoughts and to the break the awkward silence running between you two

. You've been walking an unfamiliar street with him at your side and you've barely strung a sentence together. It wasn't so bad until you turned into the residential area where the streets were just about deserted and so you two had nothing to look at or speak to other than each other.

Despite this, "I see," is all you say in response to his self-introduction. Sanada sharply turns his face away from you like he's just been whipped and makes a tiny cough.

You, now used to being alone, don't mind the silence and rather let your brain play around to deduce why your relative couldn't be here instead of this boy, but Sanada doesn't seem to be at your league in terms of walking in silence.

So you hear him and you know you're being a rude brat but you as open your mouth to add on something he might like to hear you close it again quickly. Rude as it was, you feel you've done your bit. This really wasn't the time and mood to be happily chatting away and making new acquaintances. Especially when your brain begins to unravel scenarios your relative may be caught in you'd rather not unravel.

At that point you unconsciously clutch at your phone inside your pocket, making sure Sanada can't see your knuckles move against your thin coat and tremble a little in the pressure. Against the uncertainty of it all and Sanada unwilling to relinquish his comments about your relative, you hadn't realised how tense you were. Not to mention the waves of "I-don't-know-what-to-say" confusion the silver-haired boy was emitting just piles on.

It's not that you mind Sanada, him carrying your bag like a gentleman and all, but your relative's whereabouts and welfare held great priorities and to be honest, your own emotions were tough enough to handle so you gave less than a rat's arse about what he was feeling.

But you see Sanada scratch the base of his neck looking almost wildly lost at your response and you drop your eyes. You do feel a bit sorry for the poor guy having to chauffeur a dorm mate's relative in this cold. Though it was spring now, the night still bore traces of winter.

'Should I say something?' you wonder to yourself but you wisely decide not to break out of your shell just yet.

He was hiding something at the station and you weren't going to make it any easier for him to endure his secret.

You walked a long time with Sanada.

* * *

Sanada turns at a grim oak door heavily lighted from the inside and face you. After a long painfully quiet walk, he seemed exhilarated to see the end of the trip.

"We're here," he said, pushing the wide door easily with a single gloved hand and leads you inside.

You take a step up the small stairs and enter the dorm, feeling worn old carpet snugly adjust to your feet.

It's warm inside, there a weak scent of curry in the air and to you who was too excited to eat on the train, smells like heaven.

You scan your eyes across the lobby, taking in the small old TV in the corner behind the dividers, a reception desk and the brown sofa and tea table you've seen snippets of in your relatives photos.

Everything looks just as you imagined and you almost crack a smile when Sanada offers you a seat on the sofa.

But keeping a straight face, you gingerly take a seat and look up at him again. Is he willing to speak now? But Sanada simply lowers your bag by your foot and maneuvers around the edge of the table. He doesn't meet your eye at this point and mumbles something about "getting everyone", then hurriedly strides up the far stairs by twos and disappears in a flash.

So you end up sitting there awkwardly by yourself in the spacious lobby, still wildly turning your head this way and that trying to capture in the view around you while hoping for something to happen. Something perhaps, like the entrance of your relative.

Where was he, anyway?

You ask yourself again pointlessly and feel your high tied ponytail wag as you shake your head in annoyance for what feels to be the 50 billionth time today. You flip out your phone, read his message and click your tongue at the contents.

He told you to come without a single sentence of consideration for you and your life and his short snappy sentence made you think it was an emergency. Even if it was just a characteristic of his manner of texts, he would have known you were waiting anxiously for his reply. You were waiting on dozens of unanswered messages and questions and before his stupid text had you bolting to his dorm.

Your already thin patience was ready to crack.

He sends another person to get you, isn't waiting for you at the dorm and needs to be called out to see you. You feel a greatly annoyed at your relative by now and you decide to give him a lecture when he decides to finally venture down to you and meet you face to face.

He got you to cross half a state over a single text message.

He had you at his beck and call.

Things do not work that way with you.

You cross your arms over your chest and huff.

He was going to need a lesson.

* * *

It was less than a minute when you hear the rumbling of footsteps racing, walking, or bounding down the stairs.

The first to crash down the stairs much like thunder was a thin tall guy. As soon as he landed on the last step of the stairs, he straightened his cap and untangled the chains on his pants and looked up at you.

His eyes widen like saucepans at the sight of you and you unconsciously cower a little in your seat. It doesn't help when another girl runs down just behind the first boy and gives you exactly the same reaction.

…Was there something on your face?

The boy runs up to you, almost bouncing over the tea table and securing a seat next to you while staring all over your face with so much intensity you tilt your body away from him.

The girl, noticing your discomfort shouts to your defence.

"Junpei, you're scaring her! Get back, will you?"

"Man, Yukari-cchi, I'm just lookin'." But still he falls back a bit and slides an easy grin over his good natured face.

"Woof!" A white bundle is next to arrive and you this time; you recognize this dorm-dweller easily.

"Koromaru?" You call to him as if you were asking him a question and the dog barks back at you. Its red eyes are trained on you and you sense he recognizes you somehow. It bounds towards you and takes a seat by your belongings, placing a sturdy paw on your knee. You reach to his and scratch his white fur when a cool voice brings the stairs to your attention again.

"So this is her?"

"This is her alright." Sanada was walking towards you again but this time with a red-haired female by his side. She had her arms crossed comfortably across her and seemed deep in thought while, much like Junpei, searched you from your head to your toe. It wasn't a suspicious glance but you drop your eyes at her stance a little. Koromaru whinces at your side.

"She is the one."

"Aegis-san?"

A robotic statement and a curious call completes the set of dorm-dwellers and they ease into the small circle they've created for themselves. None of them seem compelled to sit but instead they're all staring at you and it freaks you out.

"Um, would you like to take a seat?" you ask sweeping a glance around everyone while spreading your hands. You sound like the owner of the place and crack a weak smile at the irony of it but they listen to you anyway. There aren't enough seats so Sanada and the small boy with the curious voice take a stand around.

Now with them at eye level, you sneak a look at everyone's faces and instantly recognize the members of the dorm from your relative's messages and you try to identify each one of them by their nicknames he used to call them.

"So, you've come because your relative, Minato called you?" The red-haired female asks. You nod your head and pull out your phone from your pocket. Scrolling through your inbox you find your relative's last message and show it to her as evidence.

"He told me to come meet him at this dorm. You can probably tell I came as soon as I could." You say, hinting at your uniform which differed much to theirs. The red-haired female nods back at you in confirmation.

"We've been expecting you. Minato had informed Aegis of his calling for you yesterday." She says and you see the blonde haired girl raise her hand as her name is mentioned. But you barely have time to make a small wave back before your mouth blurts out the question you've been holding back.

"So where is he?"

Instantly the room freezes to a halt. The red-haired female, lowers her gaze and suddenly everyone else follows suit. It was like you were pressing on something they didn't want to tell you. But this was the reason you were here, talking to these people in the first place.

So you continue on letting your words flow freely.

"Where is Minato? Doesn't he live here?"

"He does but-"

"Why hasn't he come down to see me?"

"…."

You can feel your voice rising and you stop. If you wanted answers, you were going to have to be nice to the people who can give them to you.

"Where do we begin…" you hear her mumble almost like a whisper and your ears perk.

"Begin with telling me where he is." You reply an order and you see her turn her face away a bit, allowing the shadow of her bangs to cover her deep red eyes so you can't see her anymore.

"He is-"

"He is currently unavailable." Aegis steps forward and answers for the red-haired and you quickly turn to face the expressionless girl.

"Why is he unavailable? Wasn't it him who called me here?"

"That is true. However you cannot meet him now."

"That is…" She falters on her sentence, much unlike her attitude just before and you know this is important.

"Why can't I meet him now?" You ask again, more forcefully than you intended but it's enough to make Aegis look back at you. Blue shiny orbs stare back at you, perhaps trying to waver your determination to know the answer but you don't fall back. Instead you see Aegis' own orbs shake and dim.

"He no longer-"

"Aegis!" Aegis begins to talk when five different voices yell from all around you, stopping her in the middle of her sentence. You wildly look around but they keep their eyes on Aegis, signalling her to keep her mouth shut.

You are now officially pissed, these nameless people were keeping your relative from you. 12 hours riding from train to train, thinking only of meeting your relative was being bogged down by these unco-operative bunch of dorm mates. Were they really friends of your relative?

It was irritating to have them keep you on the edge of your seat for information and your temper boils.

"Where is my goddamn relative?!" You finally crack and yell back at the group bolting up from your seat in an instant, forcing them to face you. They have a struck look in their eyes, much like Sanada's look when you asked him the very same question before at the station. Everyone shudders at your voice yet keeps quiet on your relative- except one.

"He's gone."

"…what?"

"He is gone. He has passed on." Aegis, in her calm mechanical tone answers your question. You stare at her for a full minute, unable to comprehend her words. Your chin drops and your mouth suddenly feels dry. You must have misheard the girl. Or perhaps she uses the phrase for a different meaning? Was there an Iwatodai-dialect you didn't know of? You find yourself mulling over and over, breaking them down and piecing each letter together again until you ask, voice hoarse and barely above a whisper.

"He… passed on?" You say, your voice no louder than your breath but still Aegis hears you and closes her blue eyes and sorrowfully nods.

You don't believe this. You don't believe a singly letter of whatever this girl is saying.

How can he be dead? How can he possibly send a message inviting you to visit him then die the next day?

How is that even possible?

Your stomach lurches and you feel sick at the impossible fact given before you and your legs buckle from underneath. Junpei quickly catches you mid-fall but you can't even register his voice.

How can he be dead? Pass on? Gone?

How is it bloody possible?

"If that's a joke, its not funny." You growl, grinding each syllable between your teeth. Malicious and murderous you meet everyone around you in the eye challenging them to call their bluff before you get serious.

But no one moves.

They simply avoid your eyes or look away their faces full of guilt and sadness that you can't stand it.

So it is real? What Aegis is saying… is all real?

Your relative; your last sane relative was now gone and you've been called to this dorm for nothing?

All the hopes and dreams you had of meeting your relative is all smashed to pieces and to fade away unfulfilled?

You will never get to see if he did look like you, or did get lost in his own little world listening to music like you, or if he was glad to finally see you as much as you did waiting in deep anxiety like you?

Your world crumbles around you and 7 pairs of eyes follow your descent. You can't even tell what kind of face you're making and you don't care. Your head falls into your hands and you feel a deep rush of heat climbing up to your heart. It's another pang of pain as death claims another of you and you bite your lips in a final attempt to maintain sanity.

First your parents, then your grandma, and now your last remaining person you ever let close to you; your relative Minato, was gone. Forever. Dead. Never to be heard from again. Never to be seen.

Your phone will never beep to his messages again.

You will never have met him in real life.

You will never have known him fully. The heat boils and sizzles and at Aegis' words finally explodes from within.

"We're sorry."

And you scream and scream and scream.

* * *

Akihiko was the first to wake from the mental shock. He had never heard anyone scream like that; the voice of pure anger and sadness, the perfect blend of destruction.

He looked at the girl who was now unconscious and slumped over the sofa, face red from her screaming and cheeks stained with tears. She was so happy when he first saw her wandering the station and now she was broken and hurting. He felt terrible. No, he felt something worse than that. His own past echoed through him and he felt his empathise with the girl. He watched her chest rise and fall slowly with her breathing and closed his eyes. He knew no word could resemble something so strong and no word could possibly make her right.

As the dorm mates began to also wake from their shock Akihiko saw them glaze piteous glances over her now lifeless form one after another. He knew what they were all thinking but he knows they can't empathise. They sympathise instead. She doesn't need sympathy, he thinks and he knows what to do.

Withstanding incredulous looks, he steps towards her and kneels before her, giving her his back. It took a split moment for them to realize but Junpei and Yukari understands his actions and quickly gathers the girl, pushing her onto Akihiko's back while Akihiko tugs the girl's arms over his shoulders letting her body slump over his back in a more comfortable position.

"We'd better get her somewhere to lie down. There's still a girl's room that's empty, isn't there?"

Akihiko asks glancing over at Misturu who nods quickly.

"Last room on the right. 3rd floor."

"Roger." He replies and sets towards the stairs. Mitsuru quickly follows him, pressing her hand lightly against the girls back keeping her firmly slumped over Akihiko's back while the others wordlessly watch the sight. As soon as the two disappeared to the next floor, the other slump in their own seats looking visibly tired after the ordeal.

"That was bad." Ken mutters through a sigh and Yukari and Junpei joins in.

"Horrible."

"Terrible."

"Woof!" Koromaru barks.

* * *

**3/3 Dark Hour**

A cool air envelops you and your eyes flutter open.

A sea of blue is the first thing you see while a soft background music plays of a mysterious voice singing a nameless tune. The strange mix confuses you and you struggle to focus your sight. When you do, you're greeted by an old man watching you intensely with his fingers interlaced and poised. The tip of his long pointy nose drops then rises again with the small bob of his head.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room."

The Velvet Room? Surely it's the Blue Room or if it needs to be fancy, the Ocean Bleu Room at least.

But you decide not to question the fact and instead place your hands on the steady arm rest of the chair you are sitting in.

It's only then when you feel the hardness of the marble chair you're sitting in and the thick carpet layer under your feet. It's quite a blank room you're sitting in, apart from the seat you and the old man are sitting in, the table between you two and the large clock like object suspended over on the far wall the room is virtually empty.

Whatever the interior was designed like, a query now surfaces in your confused mind.

Since when did you get here?

You troubled face amuses the old man and he chuckles softly. He waits until his chuckle has your attention on him again then introduces himself to you.

"My name is Igor." He begins with class and continues on to tell you something you don't really understand. Something about himself being a denizen of this place and how he is pleased to see you again. Behind the humble butler-ish manner of speech, you still feel uncomfortable under his gaze so you had kept your eyes and mouth firmly under control but at the hearing of this one word, you raise your chin to meet his gaze squarely.

AGAIN?

"What do you mean 'again'? I don't understand." You speak for the first time and Igor makes a scratchy laugh.

"Well I meant for a part of you, I welcome back. But as for the rest of you I believe must be your first time here in this room."

More confusing words leave the old man's mouth and now you feel like you're falling into some sort of weird joke. The last thing you know happening to yourself is arriving at the Iwatodai dorm then being told, rather bluntly by a robotic blondie that your relative was no longer.

The rest was… at best, a blur of angry thoughts and your memory ends there.

But queerly enough you feel something tug at your heart at his words and it makes you somehow accept the fact you weren't being fed complete lies. You feel compelled to even nod at Igor's words and half expect yourself to blurt out a past anecdote you share.

But even as you cast your mind back to your oldest memory, you don't ever recall meeting this resident of the Velvet Room.

It was a strange feeling to know but also to not know.

"You were previously our best and most valued customer…" Igor starts as your silence grows, his fingers rhythmically lacing and re-lacing over each other.

"And it seems fate has called us to serve you again."

"Serve me?"

"I believe you have seen this key before?" Igor asks with a glint in his oddly shaped eyes. From his chest pocket, he fishes out a long blue key, heavily emblazoned with symbolic curls and vines, a complex design you wouldn't think was possible to produce. It was marvel to look at but it that wasn't why your mouth was now hanging open.

Yes, you had seen this key. On the 31st of January, one of the last messages sent by your relative was a picture of this key. You had fallen asleep when he sent this photo and since that night he hadn't replied to a single one of your messages so you never got to know what it was for. And suddenly it makes a shady appearance in the hands of Igor.

"I've seen it alright. Why do you have it?" Your tone is the tiniest bit accusatory but if Igor felt it, he pretends not to have sensed it in the mannered way he replies.

"Our previous customer had left it in my care. His wish was for me to pass it onto you after his leave."

Igor explained calmly.

"And here I present this key to you in honour of his wishes. Please accept this key."

**You obtain "The Contractor's Key"**

"It is with this key that you are now able to return to this room whenever you please. You will find our services useful when the appropriate time comes." Igor continues to explain (rather fruitlessly, you think) as you reach out to pick up the key he had just placed on the table between you two. But you are sure your face says it all; that you are still as confused as when you first woke up in this room.

"Appropriate time…?"

"You shall know when it arrives. It seems you have been away from your world for a long time, I cannot hold you here any longer."

And without giving you a single moment to register what he has said about time passing and whatever else, Igor waves his right arm out to his side. From his small movement, a great typhoon like forces envelops you, blowing you and your consciousness away from you. You cannot even try to fight it and you let the force take you away as it wishes.

The last thing you remember is that lingering melody of the mysterious aria in miraculous harmony with Igor's twisted voice echoing inside your head.

"Until next time."

* * *

To be honest, I played Persona 3: FES portable on a non-english language so the key items or terminology used in this story may be incorrect. Please feel free to contact me for any inconsistencies you may find.

This chapter got a bit long because it was difficult to find a point to end the chapter and the story progession is slow but I hope from the next chapter, things will start to pick up.

Till then,

Helst.


	3. Round Two: Take Three

?/? ?

It's hot. So unbearably hot. There's a heavy heap of something hot covering your body and it's just about ready to roast you alive. You squirm and move trying to escape from the heat but to no avail. The heat is still there.

You subconsciously try to open your eyes but fail; is this some sort of dream? Like you're in a nightmare and you can't wake up until your soul has been eaten alive by a ghost?

Like hell you will give up your soul.

You squirm harder, not unconscious to the loud noises you were trying to make but instead hearing only long breaths of air struggling out of your lungs. You try again and again but the harder you try the more elusive your voice gets.

Your hands are hot to the tip of your nails, and your feet are hot to the tip of your toes. Even your head is hot, not to mention your face and it's really starting to hurt. Burning, scorching, you think you can almost smell your skin burning but you realise you don't know what burning skin smells like.

It's all starting to sound a bit crazy and you struggle in vain against whatever is binding you down in your burning slice of hell, then you feel it. Strong vice like grips hold your shoulders and a waft of refreshing masculine deodorant breaks through. Followed by that a distant voice echoes softly through your mind and you try your best not to forget it; hoping the voice is equivalent to the light at the end of the tunnel thing you've heard so many times before.

"Wake up," the voice calls out to you, slightly shaking your shoulders in an attempt to peel your conscious from your dreams.

"Wake up, you're having a nightmare," the voice calls out again when you fail to respond, and this time you feel a small inkling of consciousness returning to you. It was only when you hear the voice call out to you again with a bit more urgency; you manage to open your eyes to a blindingly bright halogen lamp above your head.

The lights are almost enough to knock you back out and you growl in pain immediately but at that instant, you feel your upper body being pulled so you're sitting upright and thankfully no longer facing the light.

"Are you alright?" the voice asks you in a concerned tone and you blink out the rapidly forming spots of black and green from staring into the light. Slowly but surely you begin to make out the form of a figure, a sadly familiar figure of silver hair and dark eyes. You know him to be the guy… Sanada, the athletic guy from your relative's dorm and the last moments prior to this moment hit you again with full force.

The recollection of being told your relative is dead and gone by a ruthlessly emotionless girl creases your brows and as if mirroring your movements, Sanada's brows knot too.

"Are you not feeling well?"

"No…," you drag out your reply in a grossly unfamiliar voice. He looks again as if you have whipped him and quickly look down. It wasn't a mean question to ask given how stuffy and hot you feel but he seemed to feel as though he found his name on your black list and was treading on thin ice with you. But as scratchy and disgusting as you sound, the memories brought back are enough to render you heartless and inconsiderate for the guy's feelings.

"Ah." He replies, and scratches the back of his neck. It was at that instant you feel a stab of regret and look into the poor guy again and see a guilty look glazed upon his shaded face. His lips were thinned and frowning in obvious discomfort. But when he felt your gaze and looked back up at you, you noticed he was attempting to make a small smile. Though stiff, it proved how he felt bad. But why would he feel bad? You're the one who lost a relative, not him. It wasn't his heart still throbbing in agony and half of your mind was contemplating going straight back to that burning hell thing so you can forget about all the pain.

Then you realise something. You've heard that your cousin died. But was it a fact? Could this be some kind of sick joke or scam to get something out of you? After all, they had mentioned nothing about how or why your relative would have died and as far as you knew from your frequent texting, your relative had been a healthy person who was food and health conscious.

You scan your surroundings. You were in a room. Some bland looking room with a mirror, a TV, a desk and a cupboard was all that could be seen and the air was dusty enough to confirm your theory that you were now in an old, unused room.

You stiffen instantly in sudden realisation of the potential threat you could be sitting in right now but you look down and find your clothes are securely covering you and a thick layer of bed sheets shielding you. The only change you found was that your hair was pulled out of its ponytail. The other occupant of the room Sanada didn't look like he was going to do anything scary for the time being either. The look on his face when he saw you searching around give anything away either but he could just have been a good actor.

Mind made up, you valiantly struggle against Sanada's unloosened grips and he releases you quickly. Then staring straight into his dark orbs you clear your throat as best you can.

"I'd like to know the details," you start off uncertainly. As soon as the words left your mouth Sanada's face turned from a weak smile to completely petrified. Peeling the roughened skin from the edges of his fingernails he seemed hesitant to start though you wouldn't have pegged him for a type to be reluctant.

When he did finally look back into your eyes after a long pause, he looked determined.

"What would you like to hear about?"

"Everything." You say and Sanada offers a helpless smile.

"Everything is a vague word."

The conversation was going nowhere. You weren't going to be too careful about treading on boundaries given your grief of losing your friendly blood relative, but you weren't going to make it any easier for Sanada.

"Tell me why Minato died," you said. Sanada gave you an inquisitive look. He nodded briefly but rolled his eyes up as if he were scanning the ceiling for falling spiders and you knew he was casting his mind back. You patiently waited until his chin dropped back to face you then got up from his seat next to your bed.

"I need to bring Mitsuru. Give me one minute," and with that, he quickly exited without giving you a chance to reply. You watched his figure slide easily out of your room then to return as quickly as he left with a female companion; the red-headed girl you met earlier this evening.

They promptly entered your room and Mitsuru took the seat next to your bed and Sanada stood behind her. Despite your beseeching look, Mitsuru waited until your door had snapped shut and she was confident enough that privacy was ensured.

"I heard you have been asking about Minato. Are you feeling well enough?" Mitsuru asked you, her look not of concern but shielded. It appeared she came braced this time.

"I will be fine once you start talking," you say in a gruff manner. With Mitsuru's guard up, you figured you'd have to leap into the offensive to get her to tell you the truth. Having dealt with troublesome distant relatives over the years and watching many TV shows that weren't really for your age yet was helpful at times like these when you had to deal with something and someone of delicate issue.

Though the examples you'd usually see were "_where are the drugs_" or "_admit you have a gambling problem_", you supposed you could always improvise.

At your response Mitsuru sighed. Her face seemed to have grown weary between the time you first saw her running down the stairs and now. You really couldn't care less. But instead of giving you a reply, she simply stared at you, her mind whirring so fast you could almost hear it. When things clicked, her eyes sharpened visibly.

"How do you know Minato?"

"What?"

"How do you know Minato?" Mitsuru repeated her question slowly but surely and you stared at her wide eyed. How could she ask something like that at a time like this? It was almost insufferable of her.

"I'm his relative, the one he asked for me to come. The one he was supposed to meet today until you guys told me he just dropped dead!"

"No, that can't be true. Are you truly seeking Arisato Minato?"

Exasperated you can literally feel your blood boiling. Just where were these questions coming from? Of course you knew your own relative.

"I've shown you his texts. He made you aware I was coming. You didn't ask me before; why are you asking me about this NOW?"

"Before we were… distracted." Mitsuru's gaze shifted ever so slightly and you took this small pause to dive in.

"Didn't you hear that girl before? 'She is the one' it said. I've also shown you my texts with him before. Need more evidence? Want my blood samples? Huh?"

You are very close to shoving a finger at Mitsuru's forehead when a gloved hand interferes and lowers your offending finger back to your lap.

"Calm down. We're not distrustful of you, we just want to make sure we know how to answer your question."

"Well give me a damn answer already!" Your voice is growing and you're certain voices that had been conversing down the stairs had immediately stopped and a deathly silence was now ringing in the air.

Mitsuru quickly brushed her bangs out of her eyes and readied herself before she finally opened her red lips.

"Minato has passed over saving the world from Nyx."

Then two pairs of eyes bore into you as you felt your eyes widen in disbelief. You could see from their faces your "what-the-hell" look was not missed. You could hardly blame them and they could hardly blame you. Save the world? What is this, 14th century guardian of the empire? A comic book?

"I don't understand," you slowly manage to grind out between your teeth and Mitsuru nodded.

"There is a time called 'the Shadow time'," Mitsuru began when Sanada's eye's grew larger in turn and quickly whirled around the chair to face Mitsuru.

"You can't tell her that!"

"How can't I? She knows Minato who everyone else has forgotten. She may have some potential that allows her to remember him. It could well be potential as a persona user."

"But the Shadow time is over! Minato sealed Nyx and effectively ended Shadow Time!"

"Yes and yes," Mitsuru replied levelly at Sanada. It would appear there was a back plot to this story and being tired of waiting, you push Sanada out of the way so you can see Mitsuru's face again.

"Keep talking."

"Alright."

"Mitsuru!" Sanada yelled out again and this time, Mitsuru snapped her back rigid and shot him a fierce look. He met her unwavering gaze for a while before turning his head with an unsatisfactory sigh but did not interfere again.

"Minato was a persona-user. The word now hold no meaning and there's no point in explaining. However you should know that Minato gave up his life to save the world from destruction; of despair and an impending end."

The startling revelation had you shocked and it took a while for you to register her words fully. It sounded so much like something you'd read out of a fiction novel it was hard to believe. But by the fierce interaction between Sanada and Mitsuru, and the way her eyes gleamed, it was hard not to believe as well.

"H… How is that possible? How come he is the only one dead?" Your voice is shaky when you do find it and you're desperate for a cup of cold water. But there is nothing around you and Mitsuru started again.

"He was special. He was the only one who knew about it enough to deal with it. The only one of us with enough power to seal Death. Seal Nyx."

"I- I don't…"

"The details are trivial now. Shadow time has come to an end and there could no longer be any personas or persona-users. Minato's noble sacrifice has made the change we all needed. The reason I ask you if you were truly seeking Minato is because his sacrifice changed things so much that even we don't understand. But the base effect was that everyone who knew him forgot him for a while. We ourselves only remembered him on the day you arrived."

Mitsuru concluded and looked as if she had nothing more to add. With her sentence hanging in the air for you to absorb if you could, you tried your best to swallow it. But already filled with too much nonsense, you could only gape at her. That's when Sanada interrupted the filling silence in a much more casual conversation.

"How about we grab some food for now? You will need time to understand this."

"I need time alright," you grumbled under your breath and by the sneaky smile flitting across Sanada's lips you knew he heard you.

"You can stay here as long as you like, right Mitsuru?"

"Of course. You may take this room for as long as it takes. It's only reasonable considering the pain we have caused you."

**3/2 Night**

Sanada and Mitsuru led you down the stairs and you were only mildly surprised to find all the other dorm members standing in various points along the stairwell, apparently doing something- staring into their phone, whistling to themselves, or tying their shoelaces. Even without the jumpy reaction each of them gave you, it was too obvious they had been overhearing your conversation with the older two members. But you decided you'd let it go. Your voice did get loud and you were told on many occasions by your friends and even your slightly-deaf grandmother that you "squawk too loud".

When you finally reached the bottom of the stairs, Koromaru saw you and leapt from his spot near the sofa where you left him and quickly bounded across to you. Standing next to the TV nearby was that blonde girl; Aegis, was it?, looking impassively at you. She had such an expressionless face you were taken aback at her brazen blue stare. For someone who delivered the bad news which effectively knocked you out, she sure was bold.

"How ya doing?" Junpei asked as he followed suit behind you down the stairs. He was being careful with you this time, refraining himself from staring at you too long like when you first arrived. But a easy grin was still plastered to his face.

"I'm a little better, thanks. But there's still a long way to go," you ended your sentence under your breath but Junpei didn't catch it. He was already shouting over your head to the others asking if they should "grab some chow" once he heard you speak you were better.

"Junpei, this is a bad time to be going out for dinner like nothing has happened!" Yukari, the girl clad in pink stepped over to stop Junpei but you raised a hand.

"I don't object. I still need time to think things over so if you are all hungry, feel free to go get something. I'd rather stay."

"Ah… really? You'd rather be alone? We don't have to go; we can make plenty of food here! Right, Fuka?" Yukari swished her hair around directing her question at Fuka who had just exited the kitchen. Flour was lightly dusting her apron and a smear of dough was caked across her chin.

Rather unsure of herself, Fuka blushed heavily but nodded in agreement. But you declined again.

"No, I need to think quietly." To be entirely honest, you did want food. Your stomach was aching in hunger so much it almost hurt but the idea that you would still want to eat so soon after learning of your relative's death was frightening you. It disgusted you so much and it terrified you at the same time at what your relative would think if he knew about your condition. So you decided to hide in your room until you could sleep the night through and early next morning at a time you would think your cousin wouldn't be awake if he were around you, you'd stealthily take a bite.

Akihiko was staring. It wasn't like him to stare so forcefully but this time he couldn't help it. He could see how the girl, had her hand raised but shaking. It was neither cold in the lobby nor was she ill, so he could only assume she was shaking in hunger. To have travelled to Iwatodai clad in her uniform meant she would have begun her travel sometime today. Knowing that train food weren't as nutritious or filling as a proper home-made meal would be, he could tell it could only be hunger.

Yet she was arguing her way out of a proper meal, regardless of her state and he knew it instantly as a funny way of dealing with grief. He knew it so well because he had gone through the same stage before and he knew she wouldn't eat unless she was force-fed with a cone stuck down her throat tonight.

It was painful to watch the interaction; the girl was so out of place, and the others were so worried about her they weren't truly reacting to the girl's need.

The fact that Akihiko still had to call the girl "the girl" was another indicator of the problem.

But the girl seemed determined to decline every offer and to reject every piece of counselling. So instead Akihiko stepped in breaking the silent staring contest of will Yukari and the girl were now battling over.

"Takeba." He quietly called but Yukari didn't break her stare. Akihiko had to literally turn her away from the girl to break the stare and softly called Junpei over as well. When the baseball cap boy strode over to the two, Akihiko quietly mumbled almost indecipherably 'grab her arm'.

Immediately Junpei and Yukari's eyes lightened up. Almost twinkling in anticipation, the team spun on their heels simultaneously to face the girl again. She looked alerted when the two second years charged at her. She even gave a yelp of surprise when the two second years subsequently proceeded to hook their arms into each side of her and began dragging her.

"Wh-Where are you taking me!?" The girl yelled at her "attackers" but was given to response. As finely tuned as a team of experts would, Ken had scuttled over to swing the doors open for the three while Koromaru chased him. Mitsuru crinkled an eye at the sight before her until the figures of the younger dorm-dwellers exited the building then huffed a small quirky laugh.

"Such class," she droned sarcastically but did not say any more. Instead, swinging her red hair behind her shoulder, she promptly followed the small crowd.

It was now only Akihiko and Aegis left in the dorm and the two looked at each other. Aegis was slow today; something Akihiko noted as a trait left after Minato's "slumber", but he did not mention it. Instead, he tapped the robot's arm casually and watched her blue orbs whiz towards him.

"We should go."

"I think I shall stay."

"Are you hoping I'll drag you like how I got the girl dragged out?" Akihiko asked jokingly but to his surprise, his words were greeted with a stony stare. Immediately regretting his words, Akihiko could not hide his eyes widening a fraction at the blonde's next words.

"She has a name. Ichinose Aiko."

**3/2 Late at night**

The death grips on your arms were beginning to hurt until you were unceremoniously dropped onto a stool. The smell of ramen suddenly entered your nose and you found it almost overwhelming. But it soon soothed out with a mix of warm air and a sense of cosiness enveloped you. The other dorm dwellers then took a seat next to you along the counter and Yukari bravely stood up.

"Specialty ramen for everyone?" She yelled across the noise of the ramen shop and everyone nodded eagerly.

"I'm not hungry," you said, raising your hand again but Yukari chose to ignore it.

"6 Specialty ramen please!" The pink girl ordered at the counter and you rolled your eyes in annoyance.

"I said I'm not hungry," you ground out rather angrily then a small voice softly tried to counsel you.

"They're just trying to take care of you," Fuka said. Her voice was so soft you had to strain your ears to hear her over the racket in the house but this one you thought you could have missed. Instead of retaliating, since you know how the last retaliation worked out, you sit still.

A few minutes later, a steaming bowl of ramen is placed in front of you and a savoury scent fills your senses. You hear your stomach growl loudly and blush to yourself, hoping to God no one around you could hear it. You also pray Minato wouldn't mind.

'I wouldn't have eaten if I could,' you think earnestly, hoping some sort of sign is given to you to let you start eating. As disgusted you are at your own gluttony (despite not having any food for the past 7 hours, you still called it gluttony), you could not turn down a paid meal, hot and looking fabulous.

Gingerly and hesitantly you pick up your chopsticks, battling an inner dilemma when you notice 6 pairs of eyes watching you. Sans Koromaru who was not admitted indoors, you could feel the dorm dwellers all watching you as you break the wooden chopsticks apart into two pieces. The stare is making you self-conscious and you stare back at them in what you think was irritation.

"I'll eat," you say, hoping they would be satisfied with your response and would start eating first but no one moves. Even Junpei is waiting eagerly for you, urging you with agitated movements to grab some noodles and start slurping away.

He has a glint in his eye, you notice at that moment. Beneath the rim of his baseball cap, his eyes are urging you, almost begging you to take a bite. Only then he would feel less guilty of a crime of letting your relative die, he was thinking and you could read it so easily.

The guy who grinned so easily and the guy who was giving you the saddest of looks.

Then came the other 5 pairs of eyes. Now that you had detected the pleading look in Junpei's eyes, you recognised it in the others' as well. Even the youngest boy was wearing that face. A sorry, an apology, an attempt to mend a broken soul and let free a guilty piece of mind was on their minds and you could read it just too easily now.

So staring back down at the steamy bowl, you quickly dip your chopsticks in them and clamp down on a few strings of noodle. You can almost feel the tension in the air surrounding you grow as you bring the chopsticks to your mouth and finally take a small bite.

Junpei erupted into a small triumphant roar, and was giving Yukari a high five. As embarrassing as it were, you could tell how happy they were at the fact that you were eating. Food was not the gesture. But you eating food with them was a gesture for them; a signal to them that you were not blaming them for your relative's death.

And you understood.

At that precise moment you thought you understood, a slow deep voice rumbled in your mind.

You jumped a little in your seat at the sudden voice but it was somewhat familiar. In your mind, stars of bright light fell from above and you saw something. A glowing blue card appeared before your eyes.

Then it turned, showing you an image of a young male wearing a jester's hat, walking, jumping and dancing his way down the road with his dog inside a black frame. Beneath the frame, the number 0 could be seen as well as the words 'the Fool'.

"We grant you the power of the Fool…" the voice echoed, breaking you out of your open-mouthed reverie as the Fool backflipped in front of you.

Then as quickly as it happened, the image dimmed and you found yourself again sitting at the counter of the ramen shop with the dorm dwellers. Each of them were digging into their bowls with vigour such that none of them seemed to have noticed the whole ordeal.

"What's up? Food isn't to your taste?" Junpei asked between gulps and you shake your head quickly. He did not seemed to have noticed the card and this ringing voice; she had better keep it quiet until she could work out it's source.

"No, it's good."

Junpei grinned at you, and gave you a thumbs up.

"Glad you like it."

Breaking it off here because it's getting quite long. Sorry it's been a while; university has had me on my toes for a long while.

Enjoy the chapter! Merry Christmas.

-Helst.


End file.
